Italian Pasta Salad

Summer just screams pasta salad. I don't like the kind covered in mayonnaise though. I prefer a vinaigrette-type dressing - or bottled Italian dressing for that matter. This recipe is a delicious and fresh tasting option for all your summer parties. Did I mention it is incredibly easy to prepare?

No, I mean REALLY easy. If you can chop vegetables and cook pasta, you can make this dish. Trust me.

Ingredients:

1/2 lb pasta of your choice, cooked and drained

3 cups assorted chopped vegetables of your choice (broccoli, green peppers, onions, corn, tomatoes, etc)

* I par cooked the broccoli in the pasta water for a few minutes

8 oz (small bottle) Italian dressing

Directions:
Combine all ingredients except dressing in a large bowl. Add dressing; toss well. Serve chilled or at room temperature. That's it.

This recipe can easily be doubled or tripled to feed more people. It can also be easily modified to assist you in emptying out your refrigerator. Because Shaun and I are the only two in our house, I frequently have half pounds of pasta lying around... this is a great way to use it up (along with veggies that are on their last leg). You can even add some cubed cheese to jazz up the dish. Like anything marinated, it is best to make this a day ahead of time and then serve it. Even if you only have a few hours, it's better than eating it right away. The dressing really gets absorbed by the cooked pasta so that it is bursting with flavor in every bite! I served this salad with garlic bread so I could soak up any last juices. It's better than licking the plate, don't you think?

Pack up your salad and take it with you to a friend's house.
They will love you for it.
Tutti Mangia!

Summer-Time Sides

I love looking up new recipes and storing them in binders - hence where these next two recipes came from... One night last week Shaun (the boyfriend) and I decided to grill up a few sausages for dinner and I thought it would be best to use up some of the vegetables I had in the fridge from that weekend's food shopping run. I decided on a Cherry Tomato and Lemon Salad and Penne with Grilled Zucchini, Ricotta Salata and Mint. Both recipes were adapted from the Epicurious website.

The Cherry Tomato and Lemon Salad was actually very simple to make and amazingly delicous after it marinated in the fridge for about 15-20 minutes! Each bite was bursting with lemon flavor, but not sour at all because of the sugar added in the beginning. I personally adore cherry tomatoes and the sweetness they bring to summer so this recipe is one that I will make over and over again. Maybe next time I'll really change things up and add it to a Brunch Menu. It is so light and refreshing so why not!? The Epicurious website suggests great menu using this recipe that you might see on this Blog one day.

2 large lemons
1 tablespoon sugar
1 lb cherry or grape tomatoes (3 cups), halved or, if large, quartered
3 tablespoons chopped fresh chives
2 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon black pepper

Finely grate enough zest from 1 lemon to measure 2 teaspoons. Trim ends of both lemons, then stand lemons on a cut side and cut peel, including all white pith, from lemons with a sharp paring knife (discard peel). Cut segments free from membranes, then cut segments crosswise into 1/4-inch pieces. Toss lemon segments gently with sugar in a bowl. Stir in remaining ingredients and zest, then let stand, covered, at room temperature 15 minutes (to allow flavors to develop).

The Penne with Grilled Zucchini, Ricotta Salata and Mint was less impressive... I like each of the ingredients used separately so it seemed like a no-brainer to make this, but apparently I do not like these ingredients mixed together. Honestly, I would even say it was a bit bland. Next time I think I'll skip this recipe and just serve Grilled Zucchini! That was the best part of the recipe in my opinion. I'll also be saving my mint for Mojitos only, thank you very much.

2 pounds small zucchini, trimmed, halved lengthwise
Extra-virgin olive oil (for brushing)
Coarse kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1/4 cup fresh mint leaves, thinly sliced
2 pinches of dried crushed red pepper
1 pound penne or ziti pasta
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
3/4 cup crumbled ricotta salata (salted dry ricotta cheese; about 3 ounces)*
*Ricotta salata is a firm cheese with a mildly salty flavor

Prepare barbecue (medium-high heat). Arrange zucchini on rimmed baking sheet; brush all over with oil. Sprinkle with coarse salt and black pepper. Grill zucchini until tender, about 4 minutes per side. Transfer to work surface; cut crosswise into 1-inch pieces. Place in large serving bowl. Add vinegar, mint, and crushed red pepper; set aside. Cook pasta in boiling salted water until just tender but still firm to bite. Drain. Add pasta to zucchini mixture, then add 3 tablespoons olive oil and ricotta salata and toss. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Tutti Mangia!

Capellini with Fresh Ricotta, Roasted Garlic, Corn, and Herbs

I think I forgot to mention another method of "recipe collecting" that I've started doing... it involves 12 binders all labeled by food category and filled with recipes that I stumble across online and vowed to test out one day...

So, here we go with the first random recipe that I cooked up: Capellini with Fresh Ricotta, Roasted Garlic, Corn, and Herbs (adapted from Epicurious)

1 large head of garlic, top 1/2 inch cut off
6 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided
4 ears of fresh corn with husks (only used 2)
6 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
4 teaspoons grated lemon peel
8 ounces capellini (used angel hair)
2 cups (loosely packed) mixed greens
2 cups torn radicchio leaves (don't like the taste of this so omitted it)
1 cup fresh ricotta cheese (mine was not fresh, I'm ashamed to say)
1/2 cup finely grated Parmesan cheese plus shaved Parmesan for garnish
1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley (only had dried left, not fresh)
1/3 cup thinly sliced fresh basil leaves
1/4 cup chopped fresh dill (omitted this just bc I did not have it)
1/4 cup chopped fresh chives (used green onions)
Preheat oven to 400°F. Place head of garlic on sheet of foil. Drizzle with 2 tablespoons oil; wrap foil around garlic and crimp to seal tightly. Place garlic and corn on rimmed baking sheet. Bake until corn is tender and garlic is soft, about 25 minutes for corn and 40 minutes for garlic. Cool slightly. Squeeze garlic out of skins into large bowl; add any oil from foil. Add lemon juice, lemon peel, and 3 tablespoons oil; mash garlic, then whisk mixture. Shuck corn; cut kernels from cob and transfer to same bowl.

Meanwhile, cook pasta in pot of boiling salted water until tender but still firm to bite. Drain. Rinse with cold water; drain well. Place in medium bowl; toss with 1 tablespoon oil. Using kitchen shears, cut pasta crosswise several times. Add pasta, greens, radicchio, ricotta, grated Parmesan, and herbs to bowl with garlic mixture; toss to coat. Season with salt and pepper. Garnish with shaved Parmesan. Serves 6.

Now, one thing you must know about me is I typically never follow a recipe exactly - let's just say I like to improvise. That is exactly what I did above - in fact, my comments are in parentheses. I would definitely make this dish again but next time I would use more lemon juice and zest for sure - that lemony flavor on pasta is delic! You might also want to note that I did not mix the ricotta cheese into the pasta dish but instead used it on the side (almost to dip a few bites into). There was enough for me to have for leftovers at work tomorrow so anyone at TT who wants a taste come find me! My Shaunny was not here tonight since he is in a golf tournament so my best friend Syl came over and cooked her own dinner alongside mine (since she is gluten-free). Here is a picture of her lovely dinner too. Maybe one day she will guest blog about her recently discovered gluten free adventures?!